Handout
Khan Academy

Khan Academy: Ap Us History: 1865 1898: The American West: The Gold Rush

For Students 9th - 10th
Describes the impact of the California Gold Rush of 1848 which brought hundreds of thousands of gold-seeking migrants to the region. This massive influx of people to a place with little law enforcement and no infrastructure led to...
Article
Henry J. Sage

Sage American History: California and the Gold Rush

For Students 9th - 10th
Article by Henry Sage explaining the history of California, how it became a state, and how President Polks desire to acquire California contributed to the Mexican-American War.
Website
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of American History: Van Valen's Gold Rush Journey

For Students 9th - 10th
In this superb interactive exhibition, students explore primary resources and learn about the reasons people left their homes to search for wealth during the California Gold Rush. Van Valen, along with four other men, set out in 1849 to...
Website
Huntington Library

Huntington Library: Land of Golden Dreams: California in the Gold Rush

For Students 9th - 10th
A rich site on the California gold rush, 1848-1858. An online exhibit traces the gold rush using primary sources, a teacher page gives lesson plans from 4-12 and a kid's page offers further online adventures. Takes a long time to load.
Primary
Calisphere: University of California Libraries

University of California: Calisphere: Gold Rush Era, 1848 1865: Disasters

For Students 9th - 10th
A collection of primary source materials that highlight the risks of natural disasters associated with the California Gold Rush as people rushed in to seek their fortunes.
Lesson Plan
Other

California State Parks: Gold Rush

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
The California State Parks presents a brief unit on the California Gold Rush including three lessons which begin with the westward movement to California for gold, the actual process of mining for gold, then the effects of the rush on...
Article
Khan Academy

Khan Academy: Us History: 1865 1898: The Gold Rush

For Students 9th - 10th
The 1848 discovery of gold in the territory of California prompted 300,000 hopeful prospectors to flood into the region, altering it forever.
eBook
Other

Gold, Greed, & Genocide: The Story of California's 1849 Gold Rush

For Students 9th - 10th
Use the table of contents to explore this site which recounts the plight of the Native Americans who lived in California before the Gold Rush and the impact of the gold rush on their lives.
Handout
Sacramento Bee

Gold Rush: Chinese Transformed

For Students 9th - 10th
This CalGoldRush.com site discusses the role of the Chinese immigrants during the gold rush in California and the mark they made on history.
Interactive
Vocabulary University

My vocabulary.com: Gold Rush California

For Students 9th - 10th Standards
This page has a variety of vocabulary puzzles and activities using 19 words pertaining to the Gold Rush in California. It also offers an extensive Vocabulary Word List of 286 words, and ideas for lesson plans on the topic.
Handout
The History Cat

The History Cat: The California Gold Rush

For Students 9th - 10th
Describes the events that led to the California Gold Rush, the lives of the miners, the discrimination faced by Chinese immigrant miners and African Americans, the women who mostly stayed behind when their husbands went west as well as...
Handout
Harvard University

Harvard Univ.: Immigration to Us, 1789 1930: California Gold Rush (1848 1858)

For Students 9th - 10th
Describes the California Gold Rush and the impact it had on immigration to the United States and to the future demographics of California. Includes a high-resolution map of the gold region of California in 1851.
Primary
Oakland Museum of California

California's Untold Stories: Art of the Gold Rush

For Students 9th - 10th
The Oakland Museum presents an exhibit of art that show the miners, mining towns, new cities, and people of the Gold Rush. Be sure to read the overview of the exhibit to get the historical background.
Handout
Other

The Gold Rush: Fever

For Students 9th - 10th
This resource provides information about the Gold Rush, and fever that took place during westward expansion.
Handout
Other

The Gold Rush: Collision of Cultures

For Students 9th - 10th
This page discusses the many different cultures that came to California during the gold rush.
Handout
Other

The Gold Rush: San Francisco

For Students 9th - 10th
This page discusses how the gold rush led to the massive growth of San Francisco.
Graphic
Other

Object of History: Chinese Miners (Chinese Immigration During the Gold Rush)

For Students 9th - 10th
An image is provided of "Gan Saam Meets El Dorado," which depicts the Chinese miners in California during the 1850s in search of gold.
Unit Plan
Oakland Museum of California

Gold Rush: Stories of the Lure and Legacy

For Students 9th - 10th
Experience the Gold Rush through this multimedia presentation. See the art that reflects the environment, characters, and the role of women in the gold rush. Listen to an overview of the gold rush and its impact.
Website
Kidport

Kidport: The California Gold Rush (1848 to 1859)

For Students 6th - 8th
From here, access simple write-ups on the San Francisco Gold Rush. Topics covered include: "Life of a 49er," "Foreign Miners," "Law and Order," and "After the Gold Rush."
Activity
Read Works

Read Works: Westward Expansion the California Gold Rush

For Teachers 5th Standards
[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text about the discovery of gold along the West Coast. A question sheet is available to help students build skills in reading comprehension.
Interactive
Other

Object of History: The Gold Nugget

For Students 9th - 10th
Audio-pictorial overview of the story of the California gold rush.
Primary
Calisphere: University of California Libraries

University of California: Calisphere: Gold Rush Era: Murder and Mayhem

For Students 9th - 10th
A collection of primary source materials and informational text that looks at law and order in the "wild west" of California, identifying changing ethnicity in a growing population seeking gold and other resources.
Interactive
Other

An Exploration of Historic Prejudice: The Chinese

For Students 9th - 10th
The Chinese began coming to British Columbia in the mid-1800's. They suffered terrible abuse during their voyages to get there and much discrimination afterwards, often forced to work in dangerous conditions. Many of them sought gold...
Website
Harvard University

Harvard University Library: Open Collections: Immigration to the u.s.,1789 1930

For Students 9th - 10th
Find books, pamphlets, photographs, maps, and manuscripts about immigration to the United States, principally nineteenth-century immigration. With a timeline of key dates in U.S. immigration history and a browsable list of search themes...

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